Anyone get tangled in stuff like this? Questions I have:
Metallic paint conductive? Should I throw a layer of polyurethane over it to be safe?
How small can I go gauge-wise for wiring, digital vs power [400 leds]?
Any cool solutions for tight turns and twists?
Anyone ever split/branch their strip and have the end branches work in Parallel? Anything I need to add to keep it stable?
THANKS!
For tight turn what i do is solder 1 strip facing up and the other facing down so when you turn it on a 90° angle both face up and you have a nice tight corner. But ive only used this technique with analog LEDs. For digital ones for example the WS2812B i cut 3 different lengths of wire for a 90° turn. Soldering a piece of wire half an inch long can be a challenge thou
@Cristian_Martinez Exactly-, I’m getting way too much practice soldering little bits of wire
Lol you should see my snowflake. So many wires…
Good practice for wire gauges:
0.25 mm² = AWG23: 2.5A cont., 4A peak
0.5 mm² = AWG20: 6A cont., 7A peak
0.75 mm² = AWG18: 8A cont., 10A peak
more on good practice: +5V = red, Gnd = black.
Those wire gauges need to match the current consumption. The digital wire(s) can be thinner.
If you are doing branches beware of the signal strength. A strong signal will make the lights run better. If using the Teensy the prop shield increases the signal strength from 3.3v to 5V. I used the prop shield when I split the signal into 14branches and it would not have worked without it
Be aware of power when branching. Do the calculations
